Celebrate Me Home
by Florencia7
Summary: Post-S8 (most of it anyway ;) It's Damon & Elena's 9th Christmas together as humans, and when two Santas come to town, it may just be high time to start believing in miracles. Damon/Elena, their kids (!), Bonnie, and two other characters you might know. One-Shot. Merry Christmas!


A/N: I started writing a completely different story but then I got this plot idea, and it felt more in keeping with the holiday spirit, so I decided to go with this one. Maybe, just maybe, I'll finish and post the other one next year ;)

I hope you are having a beautiful and very happy Christmas :) May 2018 be an amazing and magical year for you! *hugs*

Summary: It's Damon & Elena's 9th Christmas together as humans, and when two Santas come to town, it may just be high time to start believing in miracles. Damon/Elena, their kids (!), Bonnie, and two other characters you might know ;) One-Shot. Merry Christmas!

Disclaimer: The Vampire Diaries belongs to L.J. Smith & CW. The credit for the title goes to the song by Kenny Loggins.

 **Celebrate Me Home**

"Three days off! What are you going to do with all that free time, Elena?" Bonnie's voice resounded across the parking lot while Elena was trying to maneuver her way through fresh snow with presents from colleagues and patients in her arms, her purse haphazardly draped over her arm, her gloves and her phone in her hands.

"Very funny," Elena chuckled, narrowing her eyes at Bonnie while placing most of the bags on the ground to find her car keys. "Better go back to explaining why you aren't coming for Christmas, Bonnie," she added, searching Bonnie's face on the small screen of the phone for clues. "And getting stuck in the Amazon Jungle won't do."

Bonnie bit her lip. "I didn't say I wasn't coming, just that I _probably_ won't make it before Christmas Eve," she said with a twinge of genuine excitement in her tone, which cheered Elena up a little, making her hope that the change of plans was caused by a positive event, and not something to be worried about. "But that other time I really got stuck in the jungle!" Bonnie added quickly and they both laughed.

Asking Bonnie to hold on a moment, Elena put the bags and her purse in and between the children's car seats in the back. She glanced toward the hospital building barely visible in the haze of rapidly falling snow. It was her last day at this hospital as she was moving to a different one in January, and it felt bittersweet, leaving a place she had gotten so attached to.

Jumping into the car, Elena shut the door, and started the engine, only then noticing a small poinsettia on the seat next to her. Damon must have put it there in the morning but was in such a hurry all day long that she did not notice it until now. With a smile, Elena pressed a kiss to the _I Love You_ note attached to it before resuming her conversation with Bonnie.

"So we can still put the present for you under our Christmas tree?" Elena aimed to verify, shaking the snowflakes off her hair and pushing a few strands behind her ears.

Bonnie gave her a mysterious smile. "Actually, there is only a Maserati left on my wish list, so if you think you can fit it under the tree, go ahead."

xxxdelenaxxx

"Daddy, where do we put a... Maserati for Aunt Bonnie?" A black-haired 5-year-old girl asked after having read the newly learned word out loud with the help of her 7-year-old brown-haired brother.

"In the Letters to Uncle Klaus pile," Damon replied with a brief smile, wrapping another book in a green piece of paper and fastening a name tag to it.

Dante reached out for the next set of labels, his forehead wrinkling in concentration, as he started calligraphing the names of Josie and Lizzie.

Estrella carefully placed the note regarding a car for Aunt Bonnie in the designated pile, but only after making sure that the note containing her desired present was still on top.

"Dad, can we go ice-skating tomorrow?" Dante asked, taking a bite of a chocolate chip cookie from a silver plate placed in the middle of the table between four red candles.

"Daddy, Dante's eating cookies for Santa," Estrella cut in, glancing up at Damon and then resting her head against his arm.

"These are not the ones for Santa!" Dante protested. "These are the other ones!" He added defensively.

"They have Christmas trees made out of sugar in them," Estrella insisted, leaning over the table to grab a stash of ribbons from its other end. Damon took one of them and hanged it over her ear. She giggled, but then added, shooting a serious look her brother's way. "Mommy said you weren't supposed to eat them today."

Dante stiffened a little, his eyes shifting to Damon who raised his eyebrows, trying to keep a straight face while dividing his attention between the discussion, phone calls from work, phone calls from Caroline who was trying to figure what Bonnie was up to this year, wrapping the presents, and keeping all the arts and crafts activities under control. He wordlessly took a pair of scissors out of Estrella's hands before she started cutting a roll of crepe paper with it.

"I didn't hear Mom say that," Dante said with an uncertain shrug.

"Well, then I guess there's only one way to save your brother from getting in trouble," Damon said, squinting, and both kids paused in their tasks, intrigued, his tone of voice reminding them of bedtime stories which he was always reading to them in such a way that it was impossible to fall asleep, because they absolutely had to know what was going to happen next. "Share the blame!" Damon concluded, taking a bite of another cookie himself.

Dante grinned. Damon offered one cookie to Estrella but she firmly shook her head.

"I don't want to get on Santa's naughty list," she explained, gathering all the glitter tubes available and shifting her eyes between them, trying to pick the color she wanted to use next.

Damon glanced at Dante who looked rather perturbed by this, apparently considering his sister's words a valid argument.

Leaning toward Estrella Damon said in a reassuring whisper. "You can't, El. Santa's already checked the list. There are only three days left until Christmas," he added with a wink.

Estrella seemed to ponder this for a second before reaffirming her stance. "Daddy, he's checking the list _twice_."

She looked straight into Damon's eyes with a such certainty in her gaze that Damon had to struggle not to laugh.

"Mom's home!" Dante called out before Damon had a chance to counter Estrella's latest argument.

The sound of garage doors going up caused both kids to jump to their feet. Grabbing a sprig of mistletoe from a small side table, Damon also rose to his feet. The kids scrambled to turn off the lights and then they waited as quietly as possible for Elena to walk through the door.

It was moments like this that always made Damon marvel inwardly at what his life turned out to be like. Standing in the darkness, in the scent of the Christmas tree, with his children holding onto him and hushing each other among stifled chuckles, waiting for Elena to walk in. It all felt like a page from a storybook. The journey that had led to this place in time was incredible, as was this moment, this life. The only missing piece was that Stefan was not here to be a part of all this, to have a life of his own similarly beautiful to this one.

The kids held their breaths at the sound of a doorknob turning. A couple of steps followed.

"I even found-" Elena stopped abruptly in mid-sentence, caught off guard by the darkness reigning in the room, especially since she had seen the lights in the living room while driving toward home.

"Surprise!" A loud cry of joy made her almost drop her bags.

Elena's eyes widened at the sight of a tall, beautifully decorated Christmas tree, bright with dozens of tiny, colorful lights.

"When did you manage to do all this?" She asked, amazed, smiling at Estrella and Dante who ran to her and hugged her before helping her with the bags.

"Daddy took a secret day off work!" Estrella explained.

"Dad _secretly_ took a day off," Dante corrected her. "And we bought some new ornaments and more lights!"

"And Dante secretly skipped school," Estrella deadpanned.

Elena widened her eyes at them in mock astonishment.

Dante huffed in exasperation. "El, you did too!"

"I didn't. I told Miss Fell I didn't feel well. That was a _lie_ ," Estrella clarified with a hint of pride in her voice before Elena had a chance to express her concern. "She called Daddy and we went to the store to buy the star and green ribbons. And we almost lost Dante in the mall because he got on the wrong elevator."

"It was an escalator, El, not an elevator. And Mom, I didn't get on the wrong one. I _deliberately_ went up the one that was going down!" He added with an excited smile.

Elena blinked, clearly not sharing Dante's enthusiasm over what he seemed to consider a great achievement.

"And Mommy, I left my gloves at the dentist's office," Estrella continued, undeterred. "We were in the toy store, and we were trying on roller skates, and we accidentally crashed into the shelves with board games. That's why we had to go to the dentist. One of Dante's teeth fell out. But the doctor said that it was a baby tooth and that it will grow back. Mommy, how come Dante has baby teeth? He is not a baby."

"You have baby teeth too," Dante retorted.

Estrella shook her head. "No, I don't."

"Can we go back to that face you made right after you saw the tree?" Damon interjected, pulling Elena by the lapels of her coat and pressing a soft, lingering kiss to her lips before pointing to the mistletoe above them.

Elena pretended to contemplate the request for a second before returning the kiss.

She drew back with a sigh. "You're lucky you're so adorable. And I mean all the three of you," she added with a smile, and then gave Damon a half-heartedly scolding look. "So what other fun things beside risking your lives, skipping school, and lying to teachers did you do today?"

"We took Uncle Stefan to a vegetarian because he didn't look too well," Estrella was quick to add. She took one of the bags from Elena and tried to reach the items inside.

"We took him to a veterinarian," Dante cut in, pulling a candle in the shape of a Santa Claus out of the bag. "And he didn't look well because you fed him chocolate," he told his sister, trying to look into the bag again, but Estrella kept dragging it across the floor away from him.

"I just wanted to give him something special to eat."

"Bunnies don't eat chocolate," Dante said expertly.

Estrella frowned. "He did eat it. But he got sick afterwards," she added sadly. "And I wanted to take him to school after Christmas. For Show & Tell."

"I'm sure he'll be feeling well by then'" Elena said with a reassuring smile, walking across the room and only after hearing stifled chuckles and giggles she realized that Damon was following closely in her footsteps, holding the mistletoe right above her the whole time.

With a smile, Elena kissed him on the cheek, on the top of his nose, and then on the other cheek, before taking the mistletoe out of his hand.

"I think we should hang this over the laundry room's door. Might be a good incentive to make some people help with the laundry," she said, squinting.

"Elena, are you implying I'm not helping with the chores on a daily basis? I always help you take off and put away your clothes."

"Yes, of course, how could I forget." Elena gave him an amused smile. "That's extremely helpful."

A doorbell reverberated in the room, and everyone looked toward the door.

Dante and Estrella exchanged a look, before wordlessly deciding to race to the door. In an effort to keep them from tripping over the power cords on the floor, Damon hastily stepped a little too close to the Christmas tree, making it almost lose its balance, and causing some of the ornaments to fall all over him.

"I've never liked those hand-made Italian ornaments very much anyway," Damon said, squinting at the shards of iridescent glass on the floor.

Laughing under her breath, Elena walked up to him, and kissed him in between picking brocade stars, which had fallen from the Christmas tree branches, off his hair.

"Merry Christmas!" Bonnie exclaimed when Estrella and Dante opened the door, their eyes widening at the sight of Aunt Bonnie accompanied by two Santa Clauses. "We made it before Christmas, after all."

xxxdelenaxxx

"How come?" Estrella repeated, apparently having a hard time accepting the fact that there could be more than one Santa Claus.

Somewhat suspiciously, she shifted her eyes between two virtually identical guests, each of them dressed up as a Santa Claus in the most immaculate manner, including hats and glasses so thick it was impossible to see their eyes.

Bonnie looked a little unprepared for that kind of skepticism, but luckily Damon was quick to find what proved to be an acceptable explanation. One Santa Claus would not be able to visit so many children in one night. That was why he had numerous appropriately dressed assistants helping him with that daunting task.

"So you are both not real Santas?" Estrella asked with a trace of disappointment in her voice.

"We are real assistants working for the real Santa," one of the Santas said in a strange, deep voice with a heavy accent that was hard to place. "Ho ho ho," he added, raising a glass of eggnog toward Damon who watched him with his eyes narrowed.

The other Santa was not very talkative, so Damon figured that he may have more luck solving the mystery by studying the one who was more eager to talk.

"There's no bourbon in it, is there?" The more outgoing Santa asked with a hint of complaint in his tone, which earned him a silencing look from Bonnie.

"No, there isn't," Damon replied with a brief smile, considering the question a hint that at least one of their unexpected guests might be familiar to them. Although he still had a hard time imagining anyone, not to mention two people, they used to know whom Bonnie might be bringing for Christmas believing it would be a happy surprise for them.

"I want the real Santa to bring my presents," Estrella said after a pause.

One of the Santas leaned toward Dante and asked under his breath. "Is she getting upset or about to cry?"

"It's hard to tell for sure, but probably both," Dante stated after a moment of consideration.

"Don't worry, El. Of course your presents will be delivered by the real Santa," Damon reassured her and Estrella looked at him, beaming. Elena bit back a smile. "In the meantime, who is going to help bringing gingerbread houses from the kitchen?" He asked, rising to his feet.

Both kids jumped to their feet and rushed to the kitchen. Elena looked after them with a smile, and Damon pressed a kiss to the top of her head before going after them.

"Family fun fact number one, Damon spoils them rotten, and Elena lets him," Bonnie informed the Santas, glancing at both of them before shifting her amused gaze to Elena who narrowed her eyes at her.

"It's not that bad, and if anything, everyone just spoils everyone, and it's working pretty well so far," she said with a small shrug.

"Fun fact number two, they never argue. It drives Caroline absolutely crazy," Bonnie continued, and this time she managed to make the quiet Santa chuckle.

Elena glanced over her shoulder at Damon and the kids placing pieces of gingerbread on one tray and all the candy and sugar decorations on the other.

"We just have nothing to argue about anymore," Elena said with a smile, looking between their guests. "So… where did you meet? I thought Bonnie's last trip was to Japan, not to the North Pole?" Elena asked, refilling Santas glasses with eggnog.

"The great thing about the North Pole is that it is close to everywhere," one of the Santas said cryptically, and Elena was certain he was smirking, even if it was impossible to see his facial expression under the artificial beard and heavy make-up.

"Well-said," Bonnie agreed and they exchanged a longer look that made Elena think that Damon was right, and one of their strange visitors was Bonnie's boyfriend. "Is that really ok if we stay until Christmas?" she asked before Elena had a chance to pose another question.

"So they didn't just get fired but also evicted?" Damon asked, placing the trays on the table. "What did you do? Misplaced a truck full of legos?"

"A truck full of legos!" Estrella echoed, amazed.

"What does 'evicted' mean?" Dante asked, shifting his gaze between his dad and Santas.

"Evicted sounds about right," the quieter Santa was quick to point out. "While I was away some people moved into my house."

Bonnie stifled a laugh. The kids gasped in surprise.

"How come?" Estrella asked with a worried frown, climbing into her chair.

"They moved into your house and you can't live there anymore?" Dante asked sadly.

"Yes, and the best part is that it was apparently my idea," the Santa concluded to Bonnie and the other Santa's amusement.

Estrella and Dante looked rather confused by this. Elena glanced at Damon who was watching both Santas with increasing curiosity, trying to figure out what was going on here.

"When you said you weren't coming alone, we thought you would come visit a boyfriend," Damon said, glancing at Bonnie before taking his place at the table.

Bonnie smiled, and leaning over the table toward Elena, and the kids she said in a low voice. "I'll let you in on a secret. He is my boyfriend," she said pointing to the Santa who seemed more at ease since the beginning of the visit.

"So who is the other guy, Bon-Bon? Your boyfriend's personal hair stylist?" Damon asked with a thin smile.

"Never!" Bonnie's boyfriend exclaimed with a laugh, but Bonnie gave him a meaningful look, and he started to cough before his laughter could become too recognizable.

"Aunt Bonnie, could you do the candle trick?" Estrella asked, pointing to the candelabra that Dante had brought from the cupboard at her request while the grown-ups were busy talking.

Bonnie smiled a little wistfully. "Actually… I can't, El, I'm sorry, but… I don't have my magic anymore."

Damon and Elena looked at each other before shifting their eyes to Bonnie.

"You lost it, Aunt Bonnie?" Dante asked, widening his eyes at her.

Bonnie's smile brightened and she shook her head. "No, I didn't lose it. I gave it up. I traded it for... a perfect Christmas gift for all of us."

xxxdelenaxxx

"Mysteries are very much in the spirit of Christmas," Elena argued from behind the bathroom door left ajar.

Damon squinted into the distance, leaning his head against the headboard.

"I'm not sure that includes providing room and board for dressed up strangers."

"Damon, you know Bonnie wouldn't bring with her anyone who could pose any threat," Elena insisted, the conversation briefly interrupted by the sound of a hairdryer. "Besides, she said that everything will be clear in a couple of days."

"Yes, and let's hope it will be a reveal worth the Christmas morning," Damon muttered, glancing at the clock. An hour was usually enough time for the children to fall asleep, so Elena and he could sneak back into the living room to place the presents under the Christmas tree. "Either way-" Damon stopped in mid-sentence when an empty box hit him on the chest.

He looked the box over, and a smirk lit up his eyes when he realized the box had apparently contained a costume called 'Sexy Snowflake'.

"These will have to serve as sexy shoes," Elena said pointing to her fluffy slippers in the shape of giant snowmen. The rest of her costume consisted of a nearly transparent night dress made out of a very thin fabric decorated with tiny white snowflakes.

"Come here before you melt," Damon said with a lop-sided smile, moving to the middle of the bed and meeting Elena half-way toward him.

She laughed under her breath, falling softly into his arms, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss. Damon's hand slid into her hair as he deepened the kiss, cradling Elena to him.

"I love you, Elena," he whispered into her ear, trailing kisses across her face before drawing back to look at her.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, Elena rested her forehead against his. "I love you, Damon," she whispered with a smile. "And now it's an opportune moment to tell me what else happened today."

Damon smiled, falling onto his back and pulling Elena with him.

"Just so you know, today wasn't half as dramatic as the retelling of it," he said, resting his cheek against the side of Elena's head, slowly inhaling the scent of her hair.

"I guessed as much." Elena looked up at him, draping her arm across Damon's chest.

"I don't want you to worry-"

"Worry?" Elena slid her fingers in between his when Damon clasped her hand in his. "You're the best dad ever. I'm never worried when they are with you."

A small frown that began forming on Damon's forehead disappeared in an instant, and he smiled.

"One question," Elena said, propping her chin on Damon's shoulder. "Why there are three dozens of board games in the garage?"

She started laughing when Damon squeezed his eyes shut.

"I figured that demolishing a toy store of all things was not something worth being arrested for, so we bought all the boxes that got somewhat damaged when we crashed into those shelves."

"We?" Elena widened her eyes at him. "Does it mean you were also trying on roller skates? Now I'm worried. Why am I being left out of all fun family activities?" Elena asked and laughed against Damon's mouth when he kissed her.

xxxdelenaxxx

Having soundlessly walked out from the bedroom to the living room, he slowly circled the Christmas tree, alight despite the late hour, brightening the entire room, making it possible to clearly see all the pictures on the mantelpiece.

He stopped in front of it, and looked at the framed memories, a wedding portrait of Damon and Elena, another one of Stefan and Caroline, a graduation picture, a picture of Elena and Jeremy with their parents, Caroline, Lizzie, and Josie on a boat, Liz in her office, a picture of Damon and Elena with Estrella and Dante, all in ski gear.

Contemplating his own memories and those he had missed Stefan smiled wistfully, reaching out for one of the pictures and holding it in his hands for a longer while.

The last three days had been a blast. Playing in the snow, building snowmen with the kids, ice-skating, watching Damon and Elena with their children. And of course watching Damon getting more and more annoyed with Bonnie's Christmas scheme and the necessity to be going everywhere with two apparent strangers dressed up as Santa Clauses. But he kept wishing for one more thing that didn't happen yet. He longed to see Caroline, see how those nine years had and had not changed her. He couldn't wait to see her.

A sudden shuffling noise made Stefan pause in his thoughts and he looked over his shoulder but it was too late to hide, because soon Estrella and Dante came into view, sliding a couple of boxes across the floor.

They didn't notice him right away but when they did, they stopped short in their tracks and just stared at him in silence, apparently caught off guard by the sight.

A white bunny leaped out of Estrella's arms and hopped across the floor toward the tree.

"Uncle Stefan!.." Estrella called after him in a stifled whisper.

With a smile flickering across his face, Stefan wondered if the kids were going to question his incomplete costume, and presence in the living room at Christmas Eve evening.

"I couldn't sleep," Stefan explained himself, forgetting to change his voice, but this obviously couldn't make him recognizable to the kids. He was also still wearing the Santa Claus costume and the white beard, and even without the thick glasses Enzo had suggested to buy, Stefan doubted Estrella and Dante could guess his identity. Bonnie had thought that waiting until the Christmas morning would make the entire thing even more magical.

It had been quite a magical week. He still remembered slipping into the sense of complete tranquility that felt warm and safe. He remembered marveling at what was undoubtedly peace, which had no beginning, and no end. But then at some point he had found himself brought back to the tangible reality by what was undoubtedly a miracle, which came in the shape of a spell Bonnie had accidentally come across, and managed to find witches willing to help her with it.

She had traded all of her magic for a chance to bring Enzo and him back to life.

He used to dream of second chances, but this was more than he could ever hope for. A brand new chance to be alive again, to be human again, to start over and have that one precious lifetime to live the way he wanted to, the right way.

"So... what are you doing here?" Stefan asked before the children could ask him the same question.

"Last year we got more presents than Mommy and Daddy," Estrella started explaining in a hushed tone.

"So this year we made some presents for them too," Dante added in a matching tone.

"So if Santa brings them less presents again, they'll still have more presents!" Estrella concluded and exchanged a happy smile with her brother, as they were obviously very proud of their plan.

Stefan smiled. "That's very nice of you," he said, lowering himself onto the carpet.

Dante and Estrella did the same as they proceeded to placing the presents they had made under the tree.

"Uncle Stefan!..." Estrella whispered, motioning toward her bunny who turned to look at her but didn't move from his spot under the tree.

"Interesting name," Stefan observed good-humoredly.

"Yeah, it's weird," Dante said, rolling his eyes a little. "I told her she should just name him Stefan but she wouldn't change her mind," he explained, extending his arms in a gesture of apparent helplessness.

"The other Uncle Stefan died before we were born," Estrella added, after crawling under the tree and successfully bringing her bunny back from there.

"The other meaning our real Uncle Stefan," Dante clarified. "He died in a fire after saving the town where Mom and Dad were born."

Before Stefan could react to that, the three of them looked toward the clock which struck midnight. Slowly, Stefan took a look around the beautifully lit, cozy room, and thought that perhaps instead of keeping up the charade for another couple of hours it could work just as well to mark the beginning of a new day with a surprise that was still probably going to shock the children less than Damon and Elena.

"I have to tell you something," Stefan said, leaning toward the kids who gave him expectant looks. "I'm not Santa Claus' assistant. I'm..." He trailed off and slowly removed his white beard.

The children's eyes widened in surprise, but after a second Estrella gasped, her eyes darting to the pictures on the mantelpiece.

"Uncle Stefan!"

Dante seemed a little confused for a second, until he quickly realized what his sister meant, and after consulting the pictures he was also certain that the person in front of them looked exactly like the real Uncle Stefan.

"Are you... Uncle Stefan's ghost?" Dante asked, perplexed.

Estrella blinked rapidly, and Stefan found it amusing that instead of being terrified, they both looked rather fascinated by the idea.

"No, actually, I'm... I'm back," Stefan said with a small smile, the strange sense of amazement overcoming him again upon saying the words out loud. "I guess that's what you call a Christmas miracle," he added cautiously, hoping that it was going to be a good enough explanation for them.

Dante and Estrella exchanged a look.

"Did Mommy and Daddy know you were working for Santa Claus?" Estrella asked so quietly that Stefan had troubles discerning the words.

He glanced at Dante who was apparently following his sister's train of thought better than he was.

"Elena, watch out for the cords."

"I'm not wearing roller skates, Damon. I won't wreck the house."

Stefan, Dante, and Estrella all straightened up at the sound of whispers and quiet chuckles coming from the hallway. It was clear from the kids' faces that for a second they wondered if it was the real Santa Claus finally coming with the presents, but the sound of Elena's voice joining Damon's quickly made them realize who it was.

Stefan held his breath, knowing that there was not enough time for any further preparations-

"Mommy! Daddy! Look who is here!" Estrella exclaimed, having figured out there was no longer a point to be quiet, since Santa Claus wasn't here yet, and the presents from her and Dante were already under the tree, so their parents wouldn't know they were not from Santa Claus.

Damon and Elena looked a little awkward after slowly coming over from the other side of the tree, scolding themselves inwardly for not checking the children's bedrooms first to make sure they were asleep.

"We were just-" Elena started with a strained smile, gathering the sides of her robe and wrapping her arms across her chest.

As silently as possible, Damon placed the presents he was carrying near the hallway, hoping the kids would not notice the packages.

Only after he straightened up and joined Elena he realized the reason for Elena stopping in mid-sentence, and he was also momentarily rendered speechless by the sight.

"It's Uncle Stefan! He didn't really die! He was working for Santa Claus this whole time!" Estrella explained excitedly, beginning to jump up and down.

Dante was smiling as well, but then his eyebrows knitted in thought. "But who is the other Santa Claus' assistant?" He asked, turning to Stefan.

"One and only, Uncle Enzo."

Woken up by the commotion, and having quickly realized what was happening, Bonnie and Enzo also decided to come into the room.

Enzo gave the kids a smile that brightened when they didn't seem at a complete loss as to who he was.

"You and Dad were volunteering in a charity together!" Dante reminded Estrella. "Doing science projects."

"That's right," Enzo immediately agreed, his tone matter-of-fact, his eyes sparkling with laughter. "Everything for the advancement of science, eh?"

Damon and Elena kept looking between Stefan and Enzo with such expressions on their faces that Bonnie stepped forward to clear one aspect of the situation up.

"You don't think I'd trade my magic for something that would last a day, right?"

"Bonnie, do you mean…" Elena started, a disbelieving smile flitting across her face.

Damon blinked, Elena's voice beginning to make it all real to him.

"They are both human. Conveniently, that was the only way I could bring them back," Bonnie said with a happy smile.

"Stefan," Damon whispered in a strained voice, and Stefan smiled, his expression mirroring Damon's when they fell into each other's arms.

Estrella and Dante ran to Elena and she gathered them to her as they watched Damon and Stefan embrace.

Estrella rested her head against Elena, but out of the corner of her eye she noticed packages left near the hallway. She craned her head to signal the discovery to her brother who followed her gaze and they exchanged curious glances.

xxxdelenaxxx

"Don't you get it, El?" Barely able to contain his enthusiasm, Dante widened his eyes at Estrella as they were sitting together in the basement with a flashlight, having agreed to meet there the night after Christmas to discuss their discovery. "Uncle Stefan and Uncle Enzo used to work for Santa Claus, and Dad said that the real Santa Claus would bring our Christmas presents, and the presents that we got, they were the same presents that Mom and Dad were trying to put under the Christmas tree!" Dante lined up all the facts, expecting his sister to draw the obvious conclusion herself, but she seemed to need a bit of help with that.

"Do you think... that Daddy is working for Santa Claus too?" Estrella finally asked, covering her hands with both hands to stifle a gasp.

Dante shook his head and rolled his eyes. "No," he said in a hushed tone. "El. Dad isn't working for Santa Claus." He paused, lowered his voice even more, and concluded, beaming. "He _is_ Santa Claus!"


End file.
